Cory's Blog

I remember it was three years ago, and I was playing the waiting game. To be more specific, I was playing several waiting games. I was waiting for my senior baseball season to start. I was waiting for winter to end, and I was waiting to graduate. Along with those “waits” I had another one, and I was reminded of it thanks to a comment in from Sarah. Sarah is from Columbia, and, like myself three years ago, is anxiously awaiting the coveted acceptance letter from USC. She was wondering when she could expect to get that all-important piece of mail. Here is the scoop: if you applied by the early application deadline, you should already know my now. However, if not, acceptance letters should be heading out sometime in early March. Now I know what you all are thinking. “Cory, I can’t wait that long. I want to know now, not tomorrow, not in five minutes, but now!” To that I say that you must be patient. I know waiting is no fun, and can be very difficult, especially when you are trying to choose a school or make plans for the upcoming years. Unfortunately, thanks to such a high volume of qualified applicants and interest in USC, it takes a while to process all of your fantastic applications. So, my advice to you all as you sweat out waiting for your letter is to just do your best to be patient, take care of your schoolwork in this last semester (as a future pharmacist, I have no prescription to give you for any type of “senioritis” you may claim to suffer from) and most importantly keep that worrying to minimum and have some fun! It is your last semester of high school, the home stretch, the final lap, or any other lame analogy you can think of (which undoubtedly will be better than all of mine). Alright, I must go for now, but until next time, make sure you know that those letters will be coming in March, so you can stop harassing your mail man, at least until then! Take care and remember patience is a virtue!

Posted by Cory at 05:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

            I don’t believe in superstitions, it’s bad luck. I will allow you a moment to let the irony of that phrase sink in before I continue. Is it starting to stick? Good. In any case, most of us have some kind of superstition, ritual, or idiosyncrasy that makes us unique. For those athletes out there, I think I speak for us all when I say during a winning streak, those socks and uniform are not going to get washed. However, superstition is not relegated to the playing field or court.

            During finals week, none of us students really seem to get a lot of sleep. Our lives consist of a waking up, eating, studying, studying, maybe napping, eating, and getting to bed way too late. Since there is not a lot of time for “showering” or “laundry” people tend to wear the same clothes for a day or two (or 6 sad but true) at a time. Should a test go well with your favorite Carolina “hoodie”, or your focus be exceptional with that hat you were wearing in the library, it immediately can become “lucky” and will be worn for the duration of finals.

            “Lucky” items are not just limited to clothes; I have known people who had their special pencil or pen just for test taking days. I personally won’t confirm or deny having “used the same pencil for every test during this semester,” but I will say that when you find one that works for you, you just don’t want to give it up.

            The whole point of finding something to bring you luck may be more than the physical act of having the item, but more to give you that mental edge. If you have used the same calculator to practice, and then use a different one on the test, you feel less comfortable. If that pair of sweats felt good going over your flashcards last night, than wear em’ to class and feel good taking the test! While they may not be “lucky” you will feel more comfortable in your environment while taking the exam.

            Now, if I may return to the sports motif for a moment. Some of you may be familiar with professional hockey players and their playoff ritual. During the postseason, they grow what is known as a “playoff beard.” I have always thought that to be a pretty cool tradition, and since finals are like my playoffs, I wanted to grow a “finals beard.” Unfortunately for me, my facial hair doesn’t quite grow in thick enough on my baby face for a real beard, so I had to settle on a “finals goatee” since it does at least kinda grow in. Just an update, with two finals left, it has been going strong for three weeks, and so far, with the power of the “finals goatee,” I feel pretty good about my tests so far.

            Anyways, those are my superstitious musings for the day. As I mentioned, I still have two pretty large finals to go, and I must be off to the books. Everyone take care and good “luck” with whatever you may need it for!

Posted by Cory at 10:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

            If today was any indication of a possible future of me teaching pharmacy school, let me tell you, I am ready to go! Up until today, I have seen many different professors come in to lecture on their specialized area and just hearing them talk about what they have done in pharmacy inspired me to consider a new “pharmacy dream job” almost daily. However, in the back of my mind, I have always made it clear that I would like to teach some day. Well today I got the chance…

            This morning was the weekly Pharmacy Calculation and Medical Terminology class, and with it, quiz. How nice to have a two hour class period at 8 Monday morning that comes with a half hour quiz every week, followed by an hour and a half lecture. Quite a way to set the tone for the week, huh?

            Well, after we had taken our quiz, the professor was going over how to do a specific type of calculation, and she called on a student to give us the answer and method of solving a problem she had just given us. He got it correct, but I had done it a different way and still gotten the correct answer. I was curious to see if it was a viable way of solving that particular kind of question, and so I raised my hand and told her that I had done it a different way. She said it was fine, but then asked me if I wanted to explain it to the class.

            Did I want to get up in front of class and explain it? I was up to the board before she had a chance to finish her sentence! I went through my explanation of the equation and calculation, inserting a couple of one-liners that got a smattering of chuckles from the class. When I had finished, I turned around and said simply, “Questions?” This got another little laugh, and with that our professor thanked me and I sat down.

            You might be wondering, “Cory, weren’t you nervous to get up in front of class?” The answer is no, and in fact, I was so excited that my hands were shaking from the adrenaline and my excitement.

            So, that was my moment in the sun in class today. I got to help teach the class, which is what I know is something I hope to do in the future, and today just helped to solidify my feelings. However, I must go now, because as the saying goes, “The student has become the teacher…and is now back to being to student again.” I’m not sure if that’s exactly how the saying goes, but in any case, I need be off and hit the books. Take care!

Posted by Cory at 10:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

            Holy fireworks, it’s July! My goodness how the sweet summertime flies by when you are having fun, working, or, in my case, having fun while working. It seems like just yesterday I was moving all of my luggage into the 16^th floor of Capstone, but here I am, already packing and getting prepared to move it all back out this Saturday. This means that we only have one more week of orientation left!

            So, it is down the homestretch we come. The classes are getting a little fuller as all of the freshman and transfer students gobble them up day after day. The weather seems to be even hotter, yet somehow rainier as well. Go figure, I guess that I will chalk that up to good ol’ Columbia summertime weather patterns. Either way, we just have to be that much better here at orientation to make sure all goes well and runs smoothly. So far, for the first four weeks, I’d say we’ve done a pretty darn good job.

            This past weekend wasn’t overly exciting, but it was a nice relaxing change of pace. Nick, Kathryn, Kenneth and I caught a Blowfish baseball game Friday night before a torrential downpour sent us home soaked. Saturday was well spent taking care of errands followed by a quiet evening with one of my favorite DVD’s, “Nacho Libre.” Sunday, Ben, a fellow orientation team leader, and our boss Harrison stopped by the Food Lion in Five Points to buy snacks for the week. After that, I worked out at Blatt and went and saw “Knocked Up” (for the second time) with Nick, Melisa, and Kathryn. Pretty ho hum if you ask me, but I will have plenty of excitement in the next two weeks to make up for any “down time” I may have had this weekend. Stay tuned for that folks.

            Anyways, that is about all the musings I have for now. I just wanted to stop by and say hey. Sorry if it wasn’t as exciting as you have become accustomed to, but even super-exciting folks like myself need a time to recharge. Anyways, take care, and have a fantastic Fourth of July!

Posted by Cory at 09:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

            Up at 6:30, to work by 8, and go hard until 6. Not exactly the easiest hours for a summer job, but someone has to help run orientation. That someone is me and 20 other of USC’s best and brightest who make up the Orientation Leader Team. Together we will be helping you have a happy, fun, and informative day at orientation this summer.

            As I have alluded to in a previous blog or two, we spent an hour and a half every Tuesday this past semester doing our spring training and getting the basics of the summer information down. However, this past Monday we moved into Capstone for the summer to start our “intensive training.” Now when I say intensive training, I really mean it, just look at the times I mentioned at the very beginning. We start early and go straight on through all day so that we can answer your questions, get you registered for class, and make sure everything runs smoothly. Are we exactly perfect yet? Not quite. Are we going to be absolutely perfect? Well, if it is up to our boss, yes, and I really think we should darn near it when y’all start coming this next Tuesday.

            Until then, we will definitely be continuing to work hard to get things down. One thing that needs mentioning is that if you have not yet registered for orientation, you need to get on the ball and do it! The later you wait, the fewer dates you can come with your specific major and the number of seats in classes fill up, so make sure to take care of that ASAP! If you have any questions, please feel free to let me know. I mean, I am the expert and everything! Take care everybody!

Posted by Cory at 09:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

            Summer blockbusters are coming right around the bend. If you are like me, you cannot wait for the big summer movies to come out. There is nothing like escaping a hot summer day in the movie theater. It seems like this summer there is a plethora of sequels coming our way. With everything from the third Spiderman to Shrek the Third, Hollywood is taking movies that have success and getting everything they can out of them. Personally, I myself am sort of like a “sequel” this summer. Imagine the following in the typical “theater trailer” voice:

            “Last summer, he came out of nowhere to aid the incoming freshman and transfer students alike. He showed up early each day and wowed both students and parents alike with his wit, charm, and overall knowledge of USC. Now, this former orientation leader returns this summer as a team leader to lead a new crop of orientation leaders through freshman orientation. Will he be able to handle the responsibility? Will he be able to handle the commitment? Will he be able to wake up at 6:30 five days a week and work for ten hours? These questions and more will be answered this summer at orientation. Will you be there?”

            Alright, hokey personal trailer aside, the point I am trying to make is that I will be at your orientation this summer as a Team Leader. So, you will get a chance to meet the “real” person behind the words.  Another point is that you should probably sign up as soon as you can. Days for certain majors are already filling up and the sooner you can get there and sign up for classes, the better. In all honesty, classes due fill on a first come first served basis, so the sooner you can get to orientation, the better chance you will get at the “perfect” schedule, whichever that may be for you.

            I can tell you from my experience as an orientation leader last summer that the day of orientation can be a little hectic, but it is also a lot of fun. I know several students that met some of their best friends at orientation

            Like I said, the day itself can be sort of long, but you learn all kinds of important information, and the most important thing is you sign up for your classes. You also have the option of taking a dorm tour, as well as visiting the health center, library, career center, or the financial aid office (a parent’s favorite).

            So, I recommend you get on registering before you run out of dates available to you, especially if you are from out of state. Do not be afraid of coming to orientation, it was honestly the best job I had because it is so much fun to meet you bright eyed freshman and help y’all out in any way I can. I can also remember how much fun my actual day of orientation was (although it’s hard to believe it was almost two years ago!)

            Now, if you want to know the answers to the “movie trailer” come in to orientation and check me, the “leading man,” out. Take care!

Posted by Cory at 05:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

            Back in my high school baseball days, “getting the call” meant having my baseball coach call me in to pitch. This week though, I got a much better call. Tuesday morning, as I was leaving my 8:00 AM Organic Chemistry class, I noticed a missed call on my phone that was “unavailable”. I did not think too much of it, maybe just a wrong number. Later that morning, at around 10:30, my phone rang with the same “unavailable” number. I picked it up, and to my surprise, it was the assistant dean of the pharmacy school, Dr. Fuhrman. He was calling to congratulate me on my acceptance into the South Carolina School of Pharmacy! That’s right, I am in!

            The surprising part about the call was that it came so early in the process. Typically, from what other students who have gotten in to pharmacy school tell me, they got their calls in February and even into March. In all honesty, I felt that with my GPA and PCAT (Pharmacy College Admissions Test), I did not need to worry about getting in too much. However, I am not one to count my eggs before they hatch, so to speak. So, until I was officially accepted, I did not want to take anything for granted, but now I am, officially!

            My biggest responsibility now is just to finish strong with the classes I am currently taking. I have to sign a contract that says I will finish what I am deficient in, which are just the classes I am taking now. When I finish this semester with the good grades I expect of myself, it will be a done deal for sure. As of now, it feels like a load is taken off my back, as the desperate need to get the grades relaxes a bit. When I graduate from pharmacy school, my degree won’t say what my GPA is, just that I am officially a pharmacist. Does this mean I will slack off? Heck no! I will keep on doing what got me in this position, but it does feel nice to have some slack in the grade department.

            As for now, a wonderful night of TV awaits me for relaxing after this week (it feels like I am done because I only have one class tomorrow): The Office, my favorite show on television, Scrubs, and ER beckon me…after I finish my anatomy flashcards from today’s lecture. See, I am still the same studious, hard working Cory. The same Cory who is now in the South Carolina College of Pharmacy class of 2011!

Posted by Cory at 09:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Well, I suppose this is my first blog that I will treat you all to. In case you missed my “about me”, my name is Cory, and I came here to USC all the way from Tucson (that’s in Arizona for those of you all who aren’t quite geography savvy, believe me, I am the same way about my South Carolina geography). I am a sophomore pre-pharmacy major, and I find out if I get accepted into pharmacy school sometime in March (stay tuned for that folks). I live with two other Pre Pharmacy majors, Nick 09' and Brad 09', from North Carolina and Ohio respectively. We met last year living in Maxcy, and from about the first month of school on, have been known as the pharmacy “trifecta.” That was one great thing about living in a residence hall my freshman year, the sense of community that was built, and as you can tell by my current roommates, you tend to find and make friends with students of the same major rather quickly, as you take a lot of the same classes. Even though USC is a rather large campus, I am amazed how often I see the same people in the same classes. I have gotten to know several people from my chemistry and biology classes last year (along with Nick and Brad, of course), who are toughing it out now in anatomy, and organic chemistry…and physics. It seems like the work does not end, but luckily the past week or so, thing have been relatively quiet on the school front (only a speech and a statistics test this past Friday), but this week I will be studying for the final stretch of tests before Thanksgiving break. What was nice about having that time is that I was able to enjoy the homecoming events the last week. Friday night culminated a week of festivities with what is known around here as “Cockfest.” It is basically a night where Fraternities and Sororities work together to perform skits based on a theme. Which, this year, was “Rock on Carolina.” What was really cool is that Carolina Productions got Randy and Jason Sklar to emcee the event. In case you are not familiar, they are on the ESPN Classic show “Cheap Seats”, and have had a Comedy Central Special. If you knew them or not though did not seem to matter, as they had the rather large audience at Williams Brice Stadium roaring with their takes on over the top news helicopter commercials and their own take on Charlie Daniel’s “The Devil Went Down to Georgia.” Add their fine comedy skills in with some very creative and funny skits, and cap it off with fireworks, and it made for one very fun night. I was unable to make it last year, but this year definitely made up for it.  I am also looking forward to this week because Carolina Productions is coming though again, and this Wednesday they have gotten Pete Rose to come and talk. As an avid baseball fan, I am really interested in what he has to say. Along with Pete Rose, a week from Tuesday, Carolina Productions has gotten Ben Folds to come and play a concert as well. They really do a splendid job in getting high quality entertainment to come to campus. In the past year they have gotten Bob Saget and Dierks Bentley to come as well. Needless to say, staying entertained during my time here has not been a problem, now if only Carolina Productions could find a way to make those 8 O’clock lectures as entertaining, I would be all set. Anyways, that is all I have for you folks today. Feel free to drop a comment or a question if there is something you would like to hear about. Until next time, I hope you’ll keep Carolina on your mind.

Posted by Cory at 11:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)